This experimental project has come to an end with Ewa and me still being together - Woohoo. As much as we wanted to, we have not managed to stay in Australia for a year due to our decision to do graduate school in Holland this September. We still have seen and experienced enough to call it a success. Ewa will be starting her masters in Urban Environmental Management in Wageningen, and I will jump in to do my Industrial Design / Design for Interaction degree in Delft. I will try to keep this web site up as a souvenir for ourselves and as a guide or inspiration for others. Before I log off however, I also wanted to thank all the Australian and not so Australian people we met along the way for making this trip more pleasurable, for giving us a helping hand in times of need (and there was plenty of this), and for being way too friendly – you know who you are.

All the best and Thank You!

Cheers :)

Jakub

We flew into the hot and humid Hong Kong yesterday and here we would spend one night on Lantau Island before flying out to Vancouver on the 7th. In British Columbia we then spent six days before we would fly back home to Toronto on the 13th. With the stopover we decided to leave two days for Vancouver, and four days for driving around the nearby Coastal Mountains. We rented a car and did some mountain hiking and overnight camping at Nairn Falls, Cheakamus Lake (my favourite), and Garibaldi Lake.

Although seeing the Canadian forest and nature was a great way of coming back and reuniting with our country, Air Canada on the other hand greeted us rather coldly and deserves a mention for their greedy way of taking money from us at every possible corner. Let me first start that although we flew often with other airlines on this trip, it was only our last connecting flight from Vancouver to Toronto with Air Canada that we were charged extra for our luggage. Doing a long intercontinental flight and this being a connecting flight we should have been ok with our two luggages, but Air Canada thought otherwise. Secondly, upon entering the aircraft the inside temperature was hot and as the sweat was forming up, thoughts came running down if perhaps they were trying to save a couple of cents on their air conditioning bill? Thirdly, everything on the flight from drinks to food to blankets was being charged for (AC was set to max once we took off). Fourthly, one of my last luggage was not put on the flight and arrived late the next day. Way to go you cheap bastards!!! Ranting aside, it was good to land in Toronto to see some friendly faces. :)

Brisbane would be the last city which we would see before leaving Australia on the 7^th of August. Before leaving here we also had to sell our Toyota Camry. Not having the time to redo the roadworthy certificate we sold the car to the first interested buyer from the Gold Coast. Maybe we could have gotten a better deal if we waited longer, but then again if we waited longer before selling it we ran the risk of not selling it at all. Relieved of having this burden off our shoulders, over the next couple of remaining days we would stay at Annie’s Inn, a great bed and breakfast place with a homey feel, and enjoyed some of what the city had to offer. Coincidentally, we also ran into our friends from Sydney, Rachel and Devin, who took us out for some great Thai food – a nice way of closing off the Australian chapter of our trip. Cheers to you two and all the other friendly Australians who we met along the way who added to our trip!!!

Car Selling Tips:

We listed our car on two websites a month before arriving in Brisbane. By the time we were in our last city we had a couple interested people who we could contact. We could have not done it without the following great sites:

• Tradingpost.com.au
• Carsguide.com.au

Woohoo. Now just staying at a bed and breakfast and preparing for our departure on Monday.

The world’s largest sand island – Fraser Island. We did a day tour of the island with a company that organized everything. I think the only minus this tour and tours in general is that you cannot decide how long you want to be in one spot, it is all decided for you. Meaning at times you feel a bit rushed. There was lots to see, so maybe it was good someone was keeping us on the move. The waters are crystal clear in the lakes and streams. They are also cold since it is winter time. Some people made a plunge into Lake McKenzie, even though it was only maybe 12’C. I decided to admire the blues of the water and the whites of the sand. Lunch was included, buffet style with salads, some meats and a selection of warm dishes. Then the 4 wheel drive bus drove along the beach. It made stops by a ship wreck, steam that you could walk along and further down colourful sands. Indeed this is paradise (that too many people know about).

Last night we camped out near this beach. In the morning we walked over for the sunrise, and for the remainder of the day we pretty much drove over to Hervey Bay. From there we would see Fraser Island the next day.

Last night we drove into this place which is known for its platypuses. Yup … found them (and some turtles) while doing a rain forest river walk. Woohoo.

Just chilling at a beach. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Today we went out to see the Hardy Reef and the Whitsunday Islands (named by Captain Cook during Easter time – see the link) with a tour operator called FantaSea.� First we got bused from Airlie Beach to Shute Harbour.� � � The islands reminded me of northern Ontario landscape.� When I looked up at the hills on the islands I saw forests that looked like they were made up of deciduous trees and some pines, with rocks closer to shore.� The difference here is that occasionally there are palms and some islands hold beautiful beaches of fine white sands.

The cruise boat took us to a platform AHH reef called Reefworld that floats in the ocean right by Hardy Reef. We got our gear ready for snorkeling and put on body suits for the water was rather on the cold side.� Maybe for whales it is warmer, they migrate to have their young this time of year and we actually spotted some as they were swimming farther out by the boat.� Back to the reef…it was magnificent.� I got so occupied looking at the various crevices, corals and fish I did not notice how cold I got, being in the water for about an hour.� I came out with blue lips and my body was shacking for a while after.� Then again, when will I come back to the reef?� � A reef of many reefs that stretches 2500km (you can see it from space!).� The corals have colours of blue, yellow, purple, white, the fish are also very colourful and have many patterns on their bodies. � This tour also included: lunch, complimentary tea and cakes. There was also a ride in a semi-submerged submarine and a viewing window where a 3 meter groper swam about.� For the price we paid (which seemed pricy at first), it was all worth it for this whole day excursion.

We arrived in Charters Towers in the morning and stopped over for breakfast with Ewa’s acquaintances (Aneta & Luke), and then did some more driving to Airlie Beach where we would see the reef the next day.